Watercress

Prop styling: Jo Harris

Griddled chicory with lemon bittercress dressing

I keep finding lunch between the cracks of the cobblestones in the back garden. Slender, peppery rocket leaves have appeared not far from where the salad box sat last year, while a lone strawberry pokes up cautiously next to Amelie's tricycle by the back door (I fear that its days are numbered). Hairy bittercress has sprung up too, which is a joy.
Many wild herbs and greens suffer from unfortunate titling; odd names that might unfairly cast them into the realm of pejorative subjectivity. There's Hogweed and Dead nettles to name but two, not to mention Bastard balm. It's the "Hairy" element of Hairy bittercress that seems to raise an eyebrow, although to me it seems to be one of the least follicaly-blessed plants in the garden. Hairy bittercress tastes not entirely dissimilar to cultivated cress, but has stronger, peppery notes. This simple side dish is great with roast pork.

3 to 4 Chicory heads, chopped in half lengthways
The juice of one lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
One large garlic clove, finely grated
2Tsp Chopped Hairy bittercress leaves
Salt and pepper
Hairy bittercress leaves, to garnish

1 Heat the griddle pan/BBQ until scorching hot, brush the chicory with a little olive oil, then place flat side down on the heat. Don't move them for about five minutes, then flip onto the rounded side for a further three. Leave to cool.
2 Squeeze the lemon juice into a glass or jam jar. Eye-up the level of juice; add the olive oil, at a ratio of two parts lemon to 3 parts oil. Stir in the the garlic, chopped bittercress and a good grind of salt and pepper.
3 To serve, toss the chicory in the dressing and serve with young bittercress shoots.

Thai carrot slaw

Shot for BBC Good Food magazine, April '12 issue

Recipe: Ally Bright

Food styling: Rosie Reynolds

Find the recipe >>> Here <<<

Ham hock, garden pea and pearl barley salad

Frightful weather this weekend what? Perfect excuse to migrate into the kitchen for the afternoon, with a basket of fresh peas from the garden and a pork knuckle. Food assistant credit to Amélie, who helped with shelling of peas.

1 Ham hock

Stock ingredients (1 Onion, 2 Carrots, 2 Celery sticks, 1 Bay leaf, a sprig of thyme, a few Peppercorns and a pinch of Sea salt)

100g Chorizo, chopped

175g Pearl Barley

150g Garden peas, blanched for a few minutes in boiling water

1 Red onion, sliced

A bunch of spring onions, finely chopped

6Tbsp Olive oil

3Tbsp White wine vinegar

1Tsp Dijon mustard

2 Cloves garlic, crushed

Mint leaves

Pea shoots

Salt and pepper

1 First cook the ham. Place the hock in a large pan and just-cover with cold water. Roughly chop the stock veg, then add to the pot with seasoning, bay and thyme. Bring water to a simmer and leave on the hob for 3 hours, turning the meat intermittently. Let the hock cool on a board for 10 minutes, before shredding the meat off the bone with a pair of forks.

2 While the barley’s cooking (approximately 15 minutes in boiling water), fry the chorizo in a pan until crispy, then cool on kitchen paper.

3 Mix the ham, chorizo, peas, cooled barley, red onion, spring onions and some seasoning together in a large salad bowl. Stir in chopped mint and pea shoots.

4 Shake the olive oil, vinegar, garlic and mustard together in an old jam jar. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, then stir into the salad (just prior to serving, as the dressing soaks into the barley pretty sharpish).

Pennywort

Wild leaf and spring flower salad

At some point during the weekend I'll find myself drifting listlessly

along the salad aisle; inspecting withered, asphyxiated leaves as they

breathe beads of condensation onto tightly-sealed plastic shells. I

can't pretend to be a wild food/grow your own martyr (eight times out

of ten a bag of rocket is flung into the basket) - but today, as the

sun shone, it just wouldn't do.

Amélie and I had been out for a walk the morning before, so I had a

rough idea of what was around. On the off-chance I wandered up the

track next to the wild apple - bunches of young ox-eye daisy leaves

were poking up though the grass. Juicy and succulent, I think they're

equal to any salad leaf.

Wild leaf and spring flower salad

• Ox-eye daisy leaves

• Dandelion leaves (used sparingly, they can be quite bitter)

• Hairy bittercress (leaves and flowers)

• Pink dead nettle (leaves and flowers)

• White dead nettle (leaves and flowers)

• Common vetch shoots

• Gorse flowers

Barney's pigeon & hedgerow salad

One one my favourite recipes, created by the wonderful Barney Desmazery. Recipe here - it's a joy...

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12232/pigeon-and-hedgerow-salad